Clothes-cabinet.



PATENTBD DEC. 12, 1905.

J. M. WALKER.

CLOTHES CABINET.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 1, 1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

L attuned:

PATENTED DEC. 12, 1905.

J. M. WALKER.

CLOTHES CABINET.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 1, 1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UN HHHHIIIILLUIHI wit "zoom UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 12, 1905.

Application filed April 1, 1905. Serial No! 253,362.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, J AMES MILLER WALKER, acitizen of the United States, residing at'Augusta, in the county of Richmond and State of Georgia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Clothes-Cabinets, of which the following is a specification.

Although my present invention may be used as a cabinet for almost any kind of clothing, its principal object is to improve the methods generally in use for displayingfor sale mens and boys suits and overcoats, having in view principally the protection of the clothes from dust and dirt or avoidance of wrinkles in the coats and overcoats caused by folding, ease of handling, and ready access for inspection, besides producing a piece of store furniture which shall be neat and attractive in appearance. I

With the above objects in view my said invention consists in the novel combination and arrangement of parts herein described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and more particularly pointed out in the accompanying claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a form of the cabinet in front elevation; Fig. 2, a vertical section thereof, taken along the line 2 2, Fig. l, and looking to the left; Fig. 3, an enlarged detail cross-section of the extensible garment-supporting device, and Fig. 4 a similar view of a modified form of such garment-supporting device.

Similar numerals are used to indicate similarparts throughout the several views.

In carrying out the form of my invention shown I construct a substantially rectangular box or cabinet 1, having its top 2, bottom 3, back 4, and sides 5 closed and its front 6 provided with two vertical elongated openings 7 8 and the smaller openings 9, 10, and 11. The openings 7 8 are provided, respectively, with vertically-sliding glass doors 12 and 13, which doors are secured to counterweights 14 by means of ropes or cords 15, which pass over rollers 16 on the top of the cabinet and are hidden from view by a molding 17 The openings 9, 10, and 11 are provided with doors 18, 19, and 20, respectively, hinged, as at 21, to swing downward and outward, the said doors being held in closed position. by the spring-latches 22. The cabinet is divided vertically from front to rear by a partition 23, such partition forming acommon wall between the two compartments 24 and 25. Ex-

tending from the partition 23 to one side of the cabinet is a partition 26, which forms the bottom of compartment 24, while a similar partition, (not shown,) but which lies directly behind the molding 27, forms the bottom of compartment 25.

Near the bottom of each of the openings 9,- 10, and 11 are located four guideways 28 29 and 30 31, extending from the front to the rear of the cabinet, as shown, and between each pair of these guideways is located aslidable shelf 32, each having near its rear end a pair of rollers 33, arranged to engage the upper guides 28 30.and' resting on a pair of rollers 34, carried by the lower guideways 29 31, near their forward ends. Each of these shelves is provided with a countersunk finger-piece 35, by which they may be pulled out or made to extend through the front opening.

.Near the top of each of the compartments 24 and 25 is an extensible garment-supporting device 36, consisting, among other parts, of a rod 37, secured at one end rigidly to bracket 38, (see Fig. 2,) which bracket is in turn made fast to the back of the cabinet, as shown. Extending over this rod 37 is the sleeve 39, separated from the said rod by ballbearings 40 and 41, the balls 40 being'located in grooves 42 near one end of rod 37 while the balls 41 are located in grooves 43 near the rear end of the sleeve 39. I do not confine myself to any special arrangement -of these ball-bearings, since many arrangements of the same may be employed without departing from the spirit of my invention. The forward end of the sleeve 39 is closed by a cap 44, which carries a suitable handle 45, by which the sleeve 39 may be pulled along over the rod 37.

Surrounding the sleeve 39 is a second though much shorter sleeve 46, mounted on said sleeve through the medium of ball-bearings 47. This latter sleeve carries a disk'or plate 48, against .56, extending. from the front to the rear of the cabinet in the upper portion thereof, as

IIO

shown. The upright 54 carries two rollers 57 and 58, the former of which travels on top of said cross-piece 56, while the latter engages the lower face thereof.

In putting the form of my invention just described in practice I raise the glass doors of the elongated compartments 24 25 and by means of the handles 45 pull out the sleeve 39 and then pull the sleeve 46, carrying the garment-supporting device to the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, and then turn the arm 49 on its pivot around substantially ninety degrees, so that it extends alongside the front of the cabinet. I then place the coats upon suitable garment-hangers and suspend these upon the hooks 51 in a row. I

then turn the arm 49 around ninety degrees farther, bringing the arm into line with the door, and push the sleeves 39 and 46, carrying the garments, back into the compartment. After this whenever it is desired to display or inspect the coats it is merely necessary to open the cabinet-door, pull out the extensible support, as above described, and turn the arm 49 around, also as described, when the coats may be readily inspected or taken down. By bracing the sleeve 39 by means of the upright supports 53 54 and the cross-piece 56 a very considerable weight may be suspended from the outer end of the sleeve 39 when in its extended position without breaking down the support. Moreover, the disk 48, engaging the upper face of the arm 49, prevents said arm from sagging when garments are not evenly distributed thereon. Portions of suits, such as vests and trousers, which may be just as well kept folded, may be placed on the shelves 32, and for inspecting these garments it is only necessary to let down the hinged doors and pull the shelves the desired distance outward.

As a modification of the garment-supporting device shown most clearly in Figs. 2 and 3 I have shown in Fig. 4 a form of such device in which the central rod 37, sleeve 39, and outer sleeve 46 (shown in Figs. 2 and 3 to be rectangular in cross-section) may be replaced by corresponding parts made tubular, in which case I provide as a means to prevent the tubes from turning longitudinally one on the other lugs 59 and 60, which are adapted to slide in grooves 61 and 62, respectively, though it is not absolutely essential that this additional means be provided.

While I have shown only a very limited number of hooks 51 on the arms 49, it will of course be obvious that a larger number may be used and also that I may employ any desired form of garment-hanger and hook. The hooks 51 and garment-hangers 52 shown are, however, of peculiar construction and are designed especially for use with this invention, the principal object of such special construction being to hold the garments in a.

more or less rigid position after having been hung up, thereby preventing them from swinging around and getting out of line when the extensible support is drawn out and the arm 49 turned around to display the garments. The special form of garment-hanger herein shown and its hook form the subjectmatter of a separate application of even date herewith, Serial No. 253,363, forming a part of United States Letters Patent N 0. 800,250, granted to me Septe1nber26, 1905, for improvements in garment-hangers, in which their structure is set out in greater detail.

What I claim is The combination with a clothes-cabinet, of a substantially horizontal supporting-rod within said cabinet and secured to one of the Walls thereof, a supporting member longitudinally movable upon said rod to form asupport extensible beyond one end of said rod, a pivot-supporting member carried by and movable on'said longitudinally-movable supporting member, a pivot carried by said pivotsupporting member, a garment-supporting arm supported substantially midway between its ends upon said pivot to rotate in a horizontal plane, whereby said garment-supporting arm may be made to extend either longitudinally of said extensible support movable on said supporting-rod or crosswise of the same, the said arm when extending crosswise of said extensible support projecting beyond both sides of said support, said garment-supporting arm adapted to support a row of garments located one behind the other and extending longitudinally of said arm.

2. The combination with a clothes-cabinet, of an extensible garment-supporting device consisting of a horizontal rod made fast to the interior of said cabinet, a sleeve arranged to slide longitudinally over said rod, a second sleeve arranged to slide longitudinally on said first sleeve, a supporting-plate carried by said second sleeve, an arm pivoted to said plate and rotatable in a horizontal plane, and garment-supporting hooks secured to said arm.

3. The combination with a clothes-cabinet, of an extensible garment-supporting device consisting of a horizontal rod made fast to the interior of said cabinet, a sleeve arranged to slide longitudinally over said rod, a second sleeve arranged to slide longitudinally on said first sleeve, ball-bearings between the said horizontal rod and first sleeve and between said first sleeve and second sleeve, a supporting-plate carried by said second sleeve, an arm pivoted to said plate and rotatable in a horizontal plane, and garment-supporting hooks secured to said arm.

4. The combination with a clothes-cabinet, of an extensible garment-supporting device consisting of a horizontal rod made fast to the interior of said cabinet, a sleeve arranged to slide longitudinally over said rod, a second sleeve arranged to slide longitudinally on said first sleeve, a substantially horizontal rail extending across said cabinet above said garment-support, an upright secured to said first sleeve, a roller carried by said upright and arranged to travel on the top of said rail, a supporting-plate carried by said second sleeve, an arm pivoted to said plate and rotatable in a horizontal plane, and garment-supporting hooks secured to said arm.

5. The combination with a clothes-cabinet, of an extensible garment-supporting device consisting of a horizontal rod made fast to the interior of said cabinet, a sleeve arranged to slide longitudinally over said rod, a second sleeve arranged to slide longitudinally on said first sleeve, a substantially horizontal rail ex- JAMES MILLER WALKER.

Witnesses:

S. L. BUSHNELL, HENRY M. NORTH. 

